Further to the column about whether martinis should be shaken or stirred, it’s very easy to tell the difference between a shaken and stirred martini - look at them! The shaken one will be opaque due to the microbubbles of air it has in suspension,whilst the stirred one will be quite clear. Personally, I’m sceptical about the idea of ‘bruising’ gin, but if you care about the aesthetics of your drink (& what martini drinker doesn’t?), then this is an important consideration. I take mine shaken, largely because I prefer them colder, but a stirred one is definitely better to look at!
Tegatu, welcome to the Straight Dope Message Boards, glad to have you with us.
When you start a new topic, it’s helpful to others if you provide a link to the Staff Report or Column being discussed. Helps keep everyone on the same page, so to speak, or at the same bar perhaps.
Straight Dope Staff Report: Why did James Bond want his martinis shaken, not stirred?
It is also worth noting that there was some previous discussion about this topic on the Message Boards: bond’s martinis
[Edited by C K Dexter Haven on 07-25-2001 at 11:48 AM]
The microbubbles are, I believe, what is referred to by the term “bruising”. This makes no sense, but you really can’t expect rigorous logic from people who think gin can be bruised.
An older thread on the topic: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=10751
And neither of these are the two or three threads I’ve participated in on this topic.